


Merits

by Jirubee (stardustcatharsis)



Category: InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: Angst and Feels, Angst and Humor, Awkward Flirting, F/M, Flirting, Friendship, Growing Up Together, Masturbation, Realization, Sex, Sexual Tension, Slice of Life, Tenderness, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-14
Updated: 2020-05-14
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:28:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24176671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stardustcatharsis/pseuds/Jirubee
Summary: A slice of life oneshot.Kagome and Sango tease each other about their misfortunes with the opposite sex with unforseen outcomes.Mention of masturbation/sex.
Relationships: Higurashi Kagome/InuYasha, Miroku/Sango (InuYasha)
Kudos: 24





	Merits

**Author's Note:**

> I originally wrote this and published it in May of 2012. This is very old and needed some freshening up, so it's a little edited and revamped!

_Merits._

The summer had come, bustling through on a heady rush of humidity and heat. The seasons had been tepid, not changing as much as they used to when she was young. Yet, Kagome sat pressing her fingers over the thinness of her pale yellow cotton dress in a daze.

Her skin was dotted with freckles from the sun as she basked in its warmth. Beneath the trees, all listless like herself, she watched the rays flicker like dying candles as they peered through the canopy.

Sango lay beside her on a tattered blanket that the miko had brought from home, and given the sinewy girl a dress of her own.

She was awkward, squirming about as though she were bare. It took some getting used to; wearing all of those futuristic garments and all. Sango remained content as the breeze kissed her skin in the early afternoon.

Kagome rolled her eyes at the woman and sighed softly to herself. She knew that Miroku-sama would find his hands wound beneath the Taijiya's skirt before the end of the day. It bemused her that Sango-chan still feigned disinterest, despite Kagome knowing better.

The last venture to Kaede-bachan's Village had left more than a few brows raised. They had been caught behind the yakimo merchant's hut with their clothing hanging askew atop of pink, flush skin.

She knew better than to bring it up in conversation without being provoked. It was admittedly selfish. If the taijiya knew what she had done with the hanyou, she would never have heard the end of it. It certainly wasn't the most pious of behaviors for a miko.

Kagome ran a hand through her long hair, feeling the tangles from its thickness catch on her fingers. "Sometimes, I wish I could cut all of this off and be free." She glowered, removing sweat from her brow. "I don't want to look like Sota!" She whined.

Sango hushed her and waved. "Let me fix it for you," she cooed, "It'll give me something to do until _they_ get back."

Her face contoured with a mixture of delight and dread thinking about the men who would return from the mountains today.

They had been gathering wares and soothing shrines of their youkai for change and a few spare morsels of food, as they often did.

"Sango-chan, aren't you happy that Miroku-sama is coming home?" Kagome giggled childishly as she slid closer to her companion.

"Iie!" Sango piped, hear cheeks ruddy from flush. She pulled a little harder on the girl's hair than she meant to, causing her friend to yelp. "I have been perfectly fine without him!"

Kagome laughed, "You've been so antsy the past few days that I couldn't leave you alone. Miroku-sama will ruin that dress, and I like the pattern on that one." She teased, feeling the heaviness of her hair become lighter with each tug.

Sango glowered, "Hmph. I don't miss him and I don't need him, either. He's a pervert now and will always be one." She huffed, twitching her nose as she finished braiding the miko's hair. "Besides, we all know that you and Inuyasha are going to run off to god knows where."

Kagome's small hands clasped to her shoulders as she hunched over, shooting her friend and incredulous look. "I doubt that I'll be going anywhere with him! He's been such an ass to me that there's no way that I would ever run off with them. Even if he wanted anything I had, I'd never give it to him." She blushed, finding it hard to hide in broad daylight.

Sango leaned back on her elbows, rolling her dark eyes as though she didn't know a thing. "Sure, Kagome-chan, we all know you go back to _To-kyo_ to have alone time with him. Kaede-bachan thinks so too." She quipped darkly, finding it hard to remain straight faced.

Kagome shot up to her feet. "No. That's not true! He is a cruel, mean spirited, jerk! I don't even like him a little bit." Admittedly, she was drowning in her own childishness. She felt sophomoric, very pale and green as a sprout. Inuyasha would never hurt a hair on her head. He was sweeter than Shippo's favorite candy.

Kagome knew better than to lie, but for whet it was, it meant more to her to keep that secret. Besides, Sango could see right through her. The two girls had shared intimate details of the other's _relationships_ prior to and currently standing, with their traveling mates. Secrets were silent truths.

It was very idiotic for them to hide such things, but the illusion kept a lightness amongst the tumult of Sengoku Jidai. Boys were a topic every girl her age talked about, and now that she was a bit older and the world had blurred beyond the familiarity of her era, this was all she had. She was eighteen. She had first kisses, heartaches, a lot of _firsts_ in this era amidst their journey.

This thankless facade miko wore was as eager and destructive as Naraku's want of the kakera.

Kagome let out a disgruntled sigh and held her palms against her face to keep herself in check. "He still loves Kikyo. You know this. I know this. She knows this. Naraku knows this, so on and so on."

Sango grinned cheekily and turned away to run her fingers down the bark of a withering pine. "Think what you want, but I saw something that I didn't want to see a few nights ago." She felt proud to have ammunition. It was very seldom that she did, but it felt satisfying. More often than not, she damned herself for not being cautious enough on her rendezvous with Houshi-sama. And somehow, she always reaped the reprocussions of her actions.

It was only fair.

The miko hesitantly furrowed her brows and crossed her arms over her chest. She didn't know what to expect, but she suspected that she better start holding her ground before plummeting in a metaphorical sinkhole. " _And_ ," she inhaled deeply, staring down at her bare feet for balance. "What might that be, Sango-chan?"

The girl wiggled and sat up straight, as she smiled brightly at the girl. Her hands flailed awkwardly in excitement. She didn't know if it was more of an embarrassing topic, or enticing. It was _gossip_ , as Kagome had called it and it was finally time to expose it. She could barely contain herself. "Well, I was getting ready to bathe and when I went to the pond, I saw Inuyasha. It was the night he was human. He never heard me." She explained.

Kagome merely winced. She knew what was coming. Deep down in her bones, she knew what Sango was going to say; That he had gone to see Kikyo and was all over her.

 _"_ I saw him," Sango stopped herself, and wriggled her hands and grimaced trying to make a gesture befitting of the incident, let alone having to live with seeing it. "And he was, you know, _taking care of himself_." She whispered, eyes wide as she tried to shake it from he memory.

Kagome's skin was instantly ablaze, red as a ripe apple. She felt nauseated nerves dancing on their ends as she tried to warp the image in her head.

"Wh-what does that have to do with m-me?" She stammered, nervously plucking at the ends of her braid.

Sango looked away, chewing at her lower lip. "He, uh, he was talking about _you."_

In that moment, the entire world came crashing to a halt. Kagome's heart thrummed in her throat as her knees felt like jelly. She covered her ears and shivered. What was going on? What made him think that was okay? _But he was attracted to_ _**her**_.

Sango smirked and covered her mouth as she giggled. They talked about many things in their time together and there should have been no shame. Yet, as her friend panicked, she peered past her as two figures came into the thicket.

Kirara followed close behind the men as they hauled their loot. Inuyasha's haori was slung across the fire yokai's back as he carried a woven basket of goods and wares. Sango felt her muscles tense as Kagome listlessly bounded around the tree line.

She gritted her teeth as she waved a hand trying to get the girl's attention. "Kagome-chan!" she whispered. Sango nudged her head. It was useless. He was too quick.

Knowing all too well that the hanyou's ears would pick up on the distress, let alone his keen sense of smell, she reached up and slapped Kagome's leg trying to get her to _understand._ She could be an idiot sometimes, too.

The miko whipped around, muttering under her breath. "Itai! Sango-chan, that was rude and you're too strong for that!" When she looked up, she was met by a pair of tawny eyes peering shamefully down on her.

Every ounce of her being became looser than hot ramen.

Inuyasha flicked his wiry bangs from his eyes, and narrowly glared. "What's going on?" He rasped, studying the redness on the girl's face. He could feel the tension and placed the basket beside him.

Kagome tried to open her mouth, but shut it just as quickly.

Sango merely glanced at the train-wreck and excused herself to definitely _not_ greet Houshi-sama. Even as Kagome shot her a traitorous glare, she smiled and carried on her as though she was oblivious to the world.

The silver haired boy hunkered down, slumped over the basket as he peered at the miko. He raised a hand and touched her forehead out of habit to check for any fever. The fever, in his mind, made her crazy.

She recoiled and didn't allow his hand to remotely touch her flush skin. She felt faint from the anxiety of being so close to him. "Don't do that." She hissed, swatting her hands as though he had actually touched her.

"Keh." The boy scoffed, "I was gone for a few days and you're gonna act like you're not excited to see me?" He retorted smugly. He was sure that he'd be able to at least kiss her sans audience, or at least hold her. Even though he clearly did _not_ care about her in the slightest, or show her any affection. He hadn't missed her in tbe slightest.

His feelings for Kagome were _innocent_. Actually, he thought, as he watched her feet splay across the grass, it was completely innocent. He'd yet to find a way to have her to himself in all of these years. Saying that particular set of words was hard to express, and he sighed.

Conversing in scathing remarks and sarcasm was so much more natural than sweetness. After some grumbling and bickering, Kagome fought the urge to say _it._ The hanyou knew it, too.

At some point during the tift, the taijiya and lecherous monk slipped away undetected; or so they thought. There would be time to coax information out of them, but it wasn't like they didn't know what was going on between them.

Kagome shuddered at the sudden chill as the evening drew in across Edo. She knew that they wouldn't be back until it was dark enough to be weary of what lurked amongst them. Despite a lull in activity the past few weeks, there were other treacherous creatures that were equally as frightening. With Inuyasha here, she relished the quiet in peace.

The girl's gray eyes finally found the courage to let them fall upon that familiar curtain of silver as the evening sun lit it like fire. "You know you should be nicer to me," She said quietly, chewing at her lip as though she had done nothing wrong.

Inuyasha plopped his head in his palm bemused. Kagome anxiously picked up leaves and twirled them between her fingers. He could smell her unease and the slightest twinge of excitement. "I'm assuming the cackling wench told you?" He said plainly, seemingly unphased by his own crassness.

Kagome stopped and dropped her hands to her sides as the wind kicked around the hem of her dress. "Told me what?" She pouted, furrowing her dark brows as though she had been wounded. She knew he could see through the rouse and she relented.

"Heh. You know damn well what she told you. You're both grown women gossiping like little girls." Inuyasha grunted, becoming increasingly exasperated.

"That's not true and you know it." She fumed. "Just because we don't talk about things that you're included in doesn't mean that we act like little girls."

He rolled his eyes and shook his head, "You act like you don't know that I can hear you from the mountains." He gestured a clawed hand towards his pert ears and stayed surprisingly calm. It was an exaggeration. He couldn't hear _that_ far, but it was still a good bit further than humans. In the pregnant silence, Inuyasha found restraint and _waited._

Kagome was a firecracker. She was daft, absurdly intelligent, and very difficult. Somewhere over the years, the miko had taught him some patience and sometimes, like now, he utilized those tools, even though he really wanted to say a plethora of things; _Do a plethora of things._

A few wrong moves and he'd be one _osuwari_ away from knowing his ancestors. Truth be told, he'd rather remain in one piece for the time being. His fingers found themselves winding around the kotodama idly as he watched the way the dwindling light hit the paleness of her eyes. They sucked him in and he sighed. She didn't even realize how beautiful she was. Every freckle on her cheeks the bridge of her nose, the one just above her lip, they all dotted her face like stars.

He was listening to her whining about this and that, dodging the question, everything she could think of to not respond. She'd talked about _exams,_ and Shippo, and how she couldn't wait to go back home.

The hanyou merely watched her nose wrinkle and her mouth move slowly and deliberately. She could bore holes through his head. He didn't think she would see through him, even then.

After a few more moments, he closed his eyes and shot up from his seat. His hands lightly gripped her wrists, as his pale hair fell around them, hiding her from the rest of the world. He didn't think his jaw could clench any tighter.

He stared down at her intently as her bare back grazed the bark of the pine. She felt the heat from the day wither away as her own took its place. She swallowed hard, staring boldly into those amber eyes. She wasn't afraid of him anymore, and she held her breath the best she could. Part of her wanted to scoff at the fact that she'd ever been afraid of him in the first place.

His fingers could feel her pulse and she stood still as he pressed against her. The man's face was mere centimeters away from hers. She wanted to bridge the distance, yet refrained. His fangs peeked over his lip as he opened his mouth, barely grazing hers in the process.

"I know what she said." He rasped, feeling the girl tense. He was wanton with emotion and pressed against her enough to feel her shudder. "Next time why don't you come with me and I'll show you how I feel." Inuyasha gently nipped at the miko's lip and released her.

Everything inside of him screamed to pull her closer, hold her, devour her. He waited for years. Love and servitude were two different things, and allowing himself the luxury of affording her time.

As he walked away, he heard the miko attempt to catch her breath. The dewy evening air clung to her like a film as she traced her fingers over her swollen lips. She watched him eagerly. His name softly spilled out of her mouth.

The boy turned around as he lifted the basket over his shoulder, "You should probably go home tonight for you're own good." He swallowed, casting her a dark glance. "There's a mangy wolf looking for you and I don't need him taking _my_ woman again."

With that, he began his trek to Old Baba's village. Kagome followed suit as she heard lumbering in the thicket. She knew it was her companions and graciously saw the giant tear in her dress. Closing her eyes, she inhaled the night and relished in the feeling of being wanted.

She watched him disappear behind the treeline, and her heart swelled. A nervous smile crept upon her lips. Eager legs wanted to stamp and kick and jump. She'd thought of him countless times and prayed to the gods to make her dreams real. She yearned to know those touches and waited for her turn to love him.

Kagome placed a hand over her chest, feeling the thunderous beat of her heart. She wanted to be a woman and to love. This could be another first they shared. Maybe after this journey was over, she could look back on how brave she was and how she gave everything she had to the boy that stole her heart.

She grew with him; grew with comrades pressed tightly against one another by the river bank. They made love there beneath the moon, holding on hope that they would have one more day together, lest Naraku steal it from them.

Kagome wandered back to the village, finding Inuyasha perched on the fence outside of Kaede-bachan's hut. He'd rolled white hadagi sleeves to his elbows and tied his hair back.

The miko felt his eyes on her. A smile spread across her face as she examined him, eagerly moving to stand beside him. The hanyou leaned against her as a clawed hand fell beside hers, silently connecting them.

A sign escaped the girl as she enjoyed his closeness. They looked towards the sky, now darkened enough to see the pin-pricks of light. Kagome pointed at a few as she recited constellations from memory.

Inuyasha hung on every word, wishing to bridge the gap between them. He listened in adoration. He always did despite how bad his attitude was _most_ of the time. He loved her and he wished he could give her everything.

Despite the rampant war, and the vastness of their obligations, they all had needs, wants. The all wanted to be _free._ They wanted _love._


End file.
